The Tunguska Conglomerate
The Tunguska Conglomerate is an enigmatic, allegedly isolated government spanning across the Tunguska Sector named so for the rivers upon the homeworld of the Fairfax Kingdom where the Conglomerate's founders first met in secret. While they have proven difficult to kill, they have also proven difficult to take prisoner. But they are not unfriendly. They have become a necessary - if strange - trading partner in the Sanctinus Galaxy. Believed to be the most advanced in survival technologies and training, many seek out the Tunguska people to learn from them, even hoping to use such training in one of the various PMC (private military companies) in the galaxy. History The Tunguska Conglomerate got its start in the Fairfax Kingdom about the same time that the slaves of the Gatekeeper Imperium were revolting against their masters. Near the Tunguska Rivers in the cold tundras of the Fairfax homeworld, a few rather wealthy and influential people in the Kingdom met in secret to discuss the Fairfax Kingdom's use of propaganda in the Gatekeeper Imperium, with the fear of provoking the Imperium into open war. This concern for their survival led to the consensus between the near ten dozen politicians and financial moguls that their best chance of survival was to split from the Fairfax Kingdom while they were distracted and begin their own means of living in safety, secrecy and comfort. The result was a nation that was rather nomadic in nature, originally starting as a fleet of five dreadnoughts, multiple battleships and carriers and countless smaller ships acting as escorts, transports and diplomacy ships that all coordinated to formally form the Tunguska Conglomerate a few centuries after the slave revolts in the Gatekeeper Imperium.. When they left the Fairfax Kingdom, they had convinced some of the brightest minds of stealth technology and drift jumping technology to join them and help develop the original Corregidor Flotilla. This Flotilla, while a mobile fortress and technological wonderland, eventually disappeared before the end of the millennium. Conspiracy theorists believe something from the Vast Void had destroyed them, others believe the ship crashed on another planet. But what most people of the Conglomerate say is that it actually became the space station Gorregidor Headquarters. But the enigmatic nature of the people leaves many suspicious of this claim as no one believes a flotilla could become a space station. Much of the history between the Split and today is mostly uneventful. The Tunguska Conglomerate continued to make advances in technologies that more ensured survival of individuals, military forces entire ships. While widely regarded with skepticism and caution, no one is ever actually afraid of people from the Tunguska Conglomerate, just suspicious. Many people in the Tunguska Conglomerate wish for these feelings to shift toward friendly first encounters, but understand that the lifestyle they live does not lend itself to friendly interaction much. The most notable thing in recent Tunguska Conglomerate history, however, is their contribution to the Exploration Society's hub station just at the edge of the Longinus Sector to the Vast Void. Some of the technologies supporting life so far from any star in the area was provided by the Tunguska Conglomerate as well as the evactuation systems placed on the station. While defensive technologies are provided by the Blue Nova Republic and response fleets in place by the Gatekeeper Imperium exclusively for the defense of the hub station, the Fairfax Kingdom is in charge of supplying the station. The Tunguska's innovations in the AI systems keeping the station operating also ensure seamless coordination between the different nations to ensure the hub station does not come to harm from the unknown forces in the Vast Void. Religion & Society The Tunguska Conglomerate is widely known to revere - to varying degrees - Ibra and Oras. Common knowledge about the conglomerate is these deities best embody the social aspects of the people of the Tunguska Conglomerate. The people wish to explore and innovate while generally making their homes among the stars. Every person in the Conglomerate owns a ship, though not by legal requirements. The cultural norm is that every person in the Conglomerate should own their own space-faring vehicle by the age of adulthood. Doing so will ensure you are capable of contributing to the greater Tunguska society. The people of the Tunguska Conglomerate are best described as nomadic, though that is not the only term. Many have described interactions with the Tunguska people as straightforward, usually direct, clear and transparent, noting intimate behavior with close friends and family almost exclusively. This is because the people of the Conglomerate have been taught that open and trasparent honesty is the best way to gain respect and reputable associates when one is under much stereotypical suspicion. The general culture has moved toward a somewhat isolationist mindset, possibly due to how the Gatekeeper Imperium attempted to turn them against the Fairfax Imperium. Social Classes While many might see bits of media from within the Tunguska Conglomerate seeing violent or strange interactions between people of the conglomerate, the few who have personally seen and interacted with the people describe a culture entirely different from what the majority of the "outside media" have seen. The culture has resulted in one that is not so much class-based as it is merit-based. Often the most respected members of the community are ones who have contributed much and shown much respect to their fellow people. If someone is shunned, ousted or hated, it's normally because they've done something to deserve it. The only truly strange thing about the culture, from the accounts provided, are the "Core minds" of the Tunguska Conglomerate. On the Corregidor Headquarters station, the ore of the station is highly restricted to a very select group of individuals. These individuals are generally very distant and reserved, though the general population says that there is an unspoken rule about leaving these Core Minds alone. They are often said to be the people who coordinate the massive operations of the Conglomerate. Some people have even said that without the Core Minds, the Conglomerate would have failed centuries ago. The only divide in the population of the Tunguska Conglomerate remains between the general Population and the Core Minds. But this usually remains to a "live and let be" kind of relationship between the two populations. The Core Minds are estimated to be only a few thousand at most while the general population reaches billions across the sector. Racial Populations The races most often seen in the Tunguska Conglomerate are humans, kasatha, androids, SROs and Kish. These people are believed to be the founding races of the conglomerate (aside from SROs who've earned a place in the Conglomerate after its formation). The Vesk, however, have also been seeing a growth coming to a population matching that of the other races. In a somewhat lesser population than the "founding races" are the elves, dwarves, drow, lashunta, ysoki, maraquoi and orcs. These people have seen growth, but are generally considered part of the greater Conglomerate society anyway because of their contributions to Conglomerate defense, arts and the needs of their communities. Ever other races has small pockets of populations scattered across the Sector, usually no more than a hundred to each micro-community. Languages The Tunguska Conglomerate speaks nearly every language belonging to the people residing in the Tunguska Sector. There is no "official language" of the planet. However, Common is the most frequently spoken language due to its galaxy-wide use of the language for trade.